Jumbo-Visma, unable to break Tadej Pogačar’s steely grip on the lead of the 2022 Tour de France for five days, finally succeeded in cracking the two-time Tour champion on the first high-altitude mountain stage to the Col du Granon. It is the first time any team has succeeded in breaking young Slovenian’s dominance since 2020.
With 4.5km to go on the vicious 11.3-kilometre long ascent the steeper pitches of the Granon, Jonas Vingegaard accelerated and opened up one bike length, two, then more and more, until it became clear that Pogačar had no response.
Passing the remnants of the breakaway, the Danish rider set off in pursuit of attacker Nairo Quintana (Arkéa-Samsic), leaving Pogačar further and further behind.
The hints that Jumbo-Visma had a plan started on the Col du Galibier, where Vingegaard tracked the yellow jersey over the crest, with Sepp Kuss and Steven Kruijswijk still at his side. Wout van Aert – previously in the day’s breakaway – dropped back to pick up Primož Roglič and haul him back to the yellow jersey group on the descent before the start of the Col du Granon.
The Van Aert-led group – also towing Groupama-FDJ hopeful David Gaudu and two teammates – made it to the leader’s group where his Jumbo-Visma teammates Vingegaard, Kruijswijk and Kuss were waiting and it looked as if the team were poised for an assault on the race leadership.
However, one by one, Vingegaard’s teammates popped out the back as climb kicked up and it looked as if their plan was coming apart. The group was down just Pogačar and his UAE Team Emirates teammate Rafał Majka, Vingegaard, and Ineos’ Geraint Thomas.
When Vingegaard seized the moment and went on the attack, Pogačar could not respond. He couldn’t follow Thomas when he went after Vingegaard, and couldn’t follow when Gaudu clawed his way back up and past.
He finished the climb in damage-limitation mode, slipping to third overall, 2:22 behind Romain Bardet, as Vingegaard powered to the stage victory.
More to come.
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